My Science Autobiography

In kindergarten I was chosen “student of the month” for math and science. I remember being the only girl, whose picture was on the bulletin board. I love the way you can find answers methodically and prove your conclusions without any subjectivity. This personal passion certainly puts a hinder on my literature reading and writing skills. Specific topics and lessons of interest seem too far gone, but a few field experiences made a heavy impact on my academics and confidence as a child and have left lasting impressions into my adulthood.
Two experiences stand out to me the most. The first being my yearly trips to Camp Beckwith in Weeks Bay. Each year I would go there for summer camp with my church and on numerous occasions my gifted class would choose that location for school field trips. We would perform numerous activities including: fishing, water sample testing, bug collections, rain gauges, leaf collages, bird identifications, and flower planting. One time I remember counting the rings on cut down trees to see how old they were and to determine the years of plenty and years of drought. Everything we did was very interesting and hands-on tasks.
The second experience, that I am truly grateful to my mother for, was my after school Science Labs. I grew up in a single-parent home, the oldest of four children. I am not sure how she managed, but one year my mother signed me up for a Science Lab program for elementary students. It met in the big high school once a week after school and was led by one of the high school science teachers. Each week he would talk about something different and do really fun and interesting science experiments with us. Often times he would let us carry out parts of the experiments ourselves. I was the only kid in my class that year that went to Science Lab. I cherished every week!
Later, during my secondary education, my teachers became more and more focused on what the text had to say and pumping us full of information, rather than experiences. However, I did attend the Alabama School of Mathematics and Science, my junior year. During my time there, I came to appreciate the many resources that were so readily available to the students. Experimenting and thinking outside the box were not only encouraged, but often times required. I received valuable information from all of my professors, and it was there that I found my love for Chemistry.
I am partial to math and science, but I feel the need to be an advocate for science to my students more so than math. It discourages me to hear my own daughter say the only science they experience is reading the textbook. Current educational demands require teachers to put most of their emphasis on reading and math to keep up with standardized testing. I want to be the teacher that uses Science to enhance reading and math skills. My philosophy includes getting your hands dirty and discovering for yourself. I want my students to enjoy learning and for factual ideas to stick, because they have uncovered the solutions on their own through experimentations.